Is a dually needed?

[daugen]

Something that didn't come up in the replies I read so far is driving in/around camp sites.
Dual rear wheel trucks are better at "floating" across mud and slop, where SRWs tend to cut and rut.

that's a very good point, thanks, flotation...treading lightly. I'm a wuss camper, most rv parks for my motorhome are gravel or paved. And where I would take this fifth wheel trailer next winter would be pretty civilized. Near a Southern beach I hope...

I'm a retired insurance guy, and truly believe in risk reduction, so everything I've been hearing leads me to the conclusion that a diesel dually
is the right tool for the job, albeit "overly qualified" for many others. I have seem these duallies hog up four parking spots in shopping centers, but if you
don't want your hitch in someone's radiator, or your rear fenders scraped, what other choice I suppose is there? Well, there usually is plenty of parking somewhere at Home Depot, usually down where all the other trucks are. Just have to park in the truck area. That's easy.

I would never consider this kind of trailer or truck if I were to go traveling around, like I intend to do this Spring. No way I want to explore some little town and drive over their curbs with a duallie. That's why I pull a VW Golf TDI behind my motorhome. But this trailer for next year will be a set and leave deal, with me driving home somewhere much further North. Well, I do want to pull a 9900 GVW trailer for my tractor, so that sure would be easy with one of these.

Thanks guys. I love the way we get to spend each other's money here...
And I'm going to keep my eyes open for a creampuff dually that someone used for their dream trips and now
can't anymore. Pretty normal for those of us in our "mature" years...

 

[Turbys_1700]

I've run my dually now for 10 years so I do have a good perspective...
To me, the stability offsets any negatives...
I drive my truck to work daily and you will adjust your parking and driving habits...
It is a pain to park but with the rear back up aid sensor I have yet to hit anything...
Dually's do not track well in the snow...
IMHO they are useless in wet grass also...
I have front wheel drive just for that...
I don't plan on going back to a SRW truck ever...
To me the benefits far outweigh the additional negatives...

 

[daugen]

instability gets way too exciting for me, thanks Turbys.

 

[foreman Etexas]

I would also go with the dually. I pull a good amount of hay and tractors and the the truck feels alot more stable,with the duals. Un-loaded its not that bad of a ride,only thing is some drive-thrus get kinda tight,the banks are the worst but alot have been putting in a wider lane. Wally world I park it out by itself anyways cause some people just dont care where there door ends up anyways.

 

[downslope]

Personally, if I had to tow that big trailer and was forced to make a compromise on dually or diesel engine I'd easily give up the diesel first. Better to be a little short on power than be unstable going down the road. If you keep looking you might find a clean V-10 or other gas with 4.10 or higher gears that will get the job done, and probably at a much lower price point and less maintenance worries than a used late model diesel.

 

[RedNeckRacin]

I would reccomend the dually also. I have towed with a SRW 1 ton cummins and it was not a fun drive with over 8 tons behind me. I had that weight on a gooseneck (5083E with loader and loaded tires, on a 5400lb GN and sometimes a 1700lb counter weight) with air bags and tires inflated to the max and it made that truck suspension seem mushy still. I could pull it but there were hills that I could only pull at 40mph with that cummins screaming. I have pulled the same load on the same trailer with a few different trucks and by far the dually felt more stable and controlled the load instead of the load controlling the truck.

I noticed a big difference in the handling based on where the load was placed, but you have very little option to move the weight with a camper. I was considerably over the GAWR on the SRW truck trying to get the load balanced where it should be.

I don't know anyone who tows heavy and doesn't prefer a dually. Some cannot justify the cost of upgrading trucks and that's their choice. I have recently upgraded to a medium duty truck and it makes a dually pickup feel like that SRW in comparison. Different strokes for different folks I suppose.



Anyways, My personal opinion is that a dually is required when you are not able to adjust the pin weight to make it manageable and when stability becomes a concern. Airbags only mask the problem and are not a long term solution. Anything over 7 tons is dually territory because how often are you towing in optimum conditions?

 

[Bigfoot62]

Is a dually necessary? No.
Would you be better off towing a big 5ver with a dually, rather than a SRW? Absolutely.

This is coming from someone who has both. F-250 Super Duty 7.3 and a F-350 Super Duty 7.3 DRW. Both trucks are autos with 4.10 rear axles. The big difference is the rear suspension and dual wheels. I've pulled big, heavy trailers with both.
Will the 3/4 ton do it? Yep. Will the dually handle it better and safer? Absolutely.

 

[Diamondpilot]

I have had dually ' s and SRW 1 tons. I prefer the SRW trucks and I tow about 10,000 miles a year. The dually is a pain in the butt to me, tracks bad in snow and mud, gets stuck easier, easier to damage, makes most bank drive ups and atm's off limit, and forget about fast food joints or single car garage doors.

Is a dually safer to tow with? Yes! But where do you stop. A Mack truck would also be safer and will last forever. To me a 3/4 ton is not a smart purchase either due to the limited gvwr of most. A SRW 4x4 1 ton like mt current Diesel F350 is a good all around truck for towing upto 20,000# and still working for daily stuff.

Chris

 

[Reg]

Something that didn't come up in the replies I read so far is driving in/around camp sites.
Dual rear wheel trucks are better at "floating" across mud and slop, where SRWs tend to cut and rut.

that's a very good point, thanks, flotation...treading lightly. I'm a wuss camper, most rv parks for my motorhome are gravel or paved. And where I would take this fifth wheel trailer next winter would be pretty civilized. Near a Southern beach I hope...

I'm a retired insurance guy, and truly believe in risk reduction, so everything I've been hearing leads me to the conclusion that a diesel dually
is the right tool for the job, albeit "overly qualified" for many others. I have seem these duallies hog up four parking spots in shopping centers, but if you
don't want your hitch in someone's radiator, or your rear fenders scraped, what other choice I suppose is there? Well, there usually is plenty of parking somewhere at Home Depot, usually down where all the other trucks are. Just have to park in the truck area. That's easy.

I would never consider this kind of trailer or truck if I were to go traveling around, like I intend to do this Spring. No way I want to explore some little town and drive over their curbs with a duallie. That's why I pull a VW Golf TDI behind my motorhome. But this trailer for next year will be a set and leave deal, with me driving home somewhere much further North. Well, I do want to pull a 9900 GVW trailer for my tractor, so that sure would be easy with one of these.

Thanks guys. I love the way we get to spend each other's money here...
And I'm going to keep my eyes open for a creampuff dually that someone used for their dream trips and now
can't anymore. Pretty normal for those of us in our "mature" years...

Never any need to hog parking spaces, that behavior says something about the owners who do it, NOTHING about the vehicles that they own.
Pick almost any brand of "car" and you can find one parked deliberately diagonally so nobody will park beside them.
I gave up on parking WAY over THERE, I swear "door swingers" go WAY over there LOOKING for me (-:

Anyway, a couple more points.
If you are looking at 15,000 GVW behind you a 9,900 SRW will keep you under 26,000 - a 12,000 DRW won't.
That may or may not matter to you according to your license class.
DRW takes about a ton more payload - i.e. "pin weight".
They are only WIDE if you get the (ridiculous looking) bulbous flared fenders.
If you want narrow get a Chev/GM (narrowest track of the big 3) chassis/cab and put a flat-bed on it.
That is the best/easiest way to handle/avoid the issues with top rail height and trailer interference.
You also get a clear full width platform, not 4 ft or so between wheel wells - it is closer to standard loading dock height too.
Allison trans is another good reason, but that wasn't what you asked about.

IGNORE anything you may have read or heard that "Campers" are exempt from the 26K CDL requirement.
Having a toilet on board won't get you out of that, though in some states that, a bed and sink might help your vehicle taxation a bit.

 

[gengine]

There are many great responses here with some really great advice. Also a lot of opinions. That being said, here's mine. I tow a lot. I have a f350 srw 4x4 and a ram 2500 srw, both diesels. For pulling a lot, go diesel. For pulling a few times a year, go gas. For power, go cummins, for speed, go dmax, and for compromise, power stroke. Stay away from the 6.0 and 6.4 power strokes. There is a reason ford dumped them in short order. As far as weights, it all depends on how the truck was put together. A truck at work is close to identical to my 350, just a dually. It also has a lighter spring package, so the difference in payload between the two is only 500#, according to the sticker. The only real benefit of the dually, as I see it, is if you have a blow out. My E rated tires are for 5400# ea., 3250#ea, dual. The two singles are rated higher than the truck. As for side to side stability, if it has the heavy sway bars, it doesn't make any difference I have found. I pull a 24k rated flatbed with a 21k forklift, almost weekly. I know I am overloaded. The good thing about 5'ers and goosenecks, some of that hitch weight is also put on the front tires.